1. Technical Field
One or more embodiments of the present invention relate to positive electrode active materials for lithium batteries, methods of manufacturing the positive electrode active materials, and lithium batteries including the positive electrode active materials.
2. Description of Related Art
Recently, lithium secondary batteries are being used as power sources for portable compact electronic devices. Lithium secondary batteries have high energy density because they use organic electrolytes, and thus the discharge voltages of the lithium secondary batteries is two times greater than that of batteries using conventional alkali aqueous electrolyte solutions.
In lithium secondary batteries, materials capable of absorbing and desorbing lithium ions are used in the negative electrode and the positive electrode, and an organic electrolytic solution or a polymer electrolytic solution fills the space between the positive electrode and negative electrode. When lithium ions are absorbed or desorbed, an oxidation reaction and a reduction reaction occur, respectively, and due to the oxidation reaction and the reduction reaction, electric energy is generated.
LiCoO2 is widely used as a positive electrode active material for lithium secondary batteries. However, LiCoO2 is expensive and its supply is unreliable. Thus, alternatives (such as composites including nickel or manganese) are being developed for use as a positive electrode active material.
However, the residual capacity, recovery capacity, and thermal stability of conventional positive electrode active materials are unsatisfactory.